German president addresses South China Sea tensions in Philippines

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Tuesday expressed concern over increasing tensions in the disputed South China Sea as he vowed to strengthen ties with the Philippines to "defend a rules-based order" in the region.

Steinmeier, the first head of state of Germany to visit the Philippines in over 60 years, said he and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr talked about the need to "come closer together" to safeguard peace and achieve greater prosperity.

"The situation in the South China Sea or, according to Philippine terminology, the West Philippine Sea, remains tense," he told a joint press conference in Manila.

"If there are setbacks now, that also causes us great concern in Europe," Steinmeier added. "Therefore, we must defend the rules-based order together."

The Philippines has been facing increasing aggression from China in the disputed South China Sea, where dozens to sometimes hundreds of Chinese ships are blocking Filipino fishermen and vessels.

Last month, the Philippines monitored a six-by-six-metre floating structure that appears to be an antenna floating near Scarborough Shoal, which is within the Phiippines’ exclusive economic zone.

Steinmeier noted that the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz in the Middle East had shown the world "in drastic ways" how violations of international maritime law could endanger free trade.

Marcos hailed Steinmeier’s visit as a "clear indication of Germany’s commitment to sustain the momentum of high-level exchanges between [the] two countries."

"The Philippines will be very, very open to" discussing a visiting forces agreement with Germany "when the time comes," Marcos added.